MENTAL DEFECTIVES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXV, Issue 20028, 18 August 1928, Page 14

MENTAL DEFECTIVES.

SCOPE OF LEGISLATION. CAUSES OF DEGENERACY, ALCOHOL AND DISEASE IGNORED BY" PIIOFESSOn A. B. FIXTj jr. A.. ni.D. No., 11. Til the previous article, it vns pointed out that there is no evidence of any value for the widespread belief expressed by the advocates of the Mental Defectives Bill to the effect that mental defect is one of the chief causes of crime and general ..social incapacity. Thus when Air. Ti'iggs says the operation of the bill "will lessen the load of misery, wretchedness and crime which are directly duo to this cause (feeble-mindedness)," he is merely slating'his own hopes in this matter. Legislation should stand oil the solid ground of fact and not of the fantastic workings of imagination. This same belief lies behind the new class of mental defective created by the bill, the class of "social defectives." This is defined as follows: "Persons socially defective—that is, persons who . suffer fiom mental deficiency associated with or manifested by anti-social conduct, and who require supervision for their own protection or in the public interest." This definition assumes a causal relation between mental defect and antisocial conduct, and , practically says that when you cannot discover mental defect directly, you can safely conclude, that "anti-social conduct" is a sure sign that it is there. Dangerous Lack of Definition.

Imagine tho evils that could bo perpetrated by this measure, backed by all the force of law! There is no definition provided for the terms "anti-social conduct" and . "in tho public interest." As we do not live in a perfect world, but a world with interests and designs sometimes of a very malicious kind, any sort of injustice might be worked. Under this class of defective, practically all the great reformers of history would, have been included; thus they would _ have been entered on such a register. Yet tho great majority of them have been immortalised for their achievements.

Further, many of the cases of functional neurosis, such as "shell shock," the equivalent of which are often caused in every-day life through the effects of emotional stress, etc., would fall into this class; yet, with the grossest injustice to the individuals concerned. There seems not the slightest doubt that, failing scientific support and lacking all reasonable safeguards in the use of terms, this new class of social defect should be removed from tho bill. Feeble-minded Parents. Let us now turn to tho main pieco of administrative machinery of tho bill. It. consists in registering all the cases of apparent defect and preventing these individuals from reproducing their kind. Here we have the assumption that feeble-minded parent, or parents, almost always have feeble-minded children. . This assumption looks less certain to-day than it did half-a-ceiiturv ago, and on evidence, too, of actual Cases much more likely to stand the test of time than the flimsy " evidence," so-called, which Mr. Triggs and others use. As to the alleged introduction into this country " during the Public Works ' boomduring -tho early seventies " of • a " highly undesirable class of immigrant," wo require, surely, more closely-guarded evidence than the opinion of an individual;

There is much very concrete.evidence that feeblemindedness is not as certainly transmitted to offspring as the bill assumes. A large body of biological and medical scientists of the very highest standing are sceptical of the whole thing. Dr. Glueck, of New York, for example, tells us that much, if not most, of what we meet with in the field of mental diseases of children can well bo explained on the grounds of the acquisition of unhygienic, habits, such as those of lack of social or biological adjustment. The same authority says the issue regarding inheritance of mental defect is " still very obscure." lie finds most of the evidence of cases of defective families not very convincing, and says more and more cases come to light of feeble-minded persons having normal children. lie, with others, after referring to" accidents and other circumstances at birth as a frequent, cause of defect in th'e children, points out the part played by syphilis, and alcoholism in the parents, and by scarlet fever, measles and meningitis in the child, in causing- mental defect. He leaves •us to conclude that the case for heredilj has been altogether overdone. Professor Still, of the University of London, one of the most highly-recognised authorities on the diseases of children, gives evidence of a very similar kind. He shows that out of a total of 350 cases, 288 were due to developmental disturbances, rather than to straight-out inheritance. The Cause of Defectiveness.

We would further stress the fact that syphilis or alcoholism in parents often causes mental defect in children. Suppose, for example, wo find a case of a parent, or parents, apparently rat her dull mentally, and. also either of drunken habits or sexually debased, and note that their child is apparently defective in mind. We may bo inclined to. say the mental defect is inherited. but this may mean either that (he mental defect of parent has been handed on to the child, or that the drinking habits or presence of syphilis in the parent has been the cause. Of course, the cause mav still lie elsewhere.

Now this is precisely the kind of tiling found in five of the six "cases" quoted by She Mental Defectives Committee of 1924. Case No. 1 is the only one where the apparent weak-mindedness of parents is not accompanied by drinking or immoral habits. The condition of the parents in tl 10 other cases runs as follows Father feeble-minded, mother feeble-minded and drunkard; father old-age pensioner in homo for aged people, mother apparently weak mentally and morally—at time of the report in a reformatory home; father addicted to drink and degenerate, mother drunkard and menially deficient; father drunken waster, mother feeble-minded, helpless invalid r father subnormal (a sexual case), mother has always been addicted to periodic fits of insanity. Wo are then told of the deplorable condition of the children, of their immorality, or mental defect, etc., of the fearful cost to tho State, all of which is, of course, deplorable. But before wo draw any conclusion regarding tho "multiplication of the feeble-minded," let us sec whether the cause of weak-mindedness is not alcoholism or venereal disease in tho parent or parents. If. such an outstanding authority as Professor Still is to bo trusted," then, much of feebin-mincledness will rather be prevented by registering and sterilising tho alcoholic and syphilitic parents than those who are merely feeble-minded. Vet the bill has nothing to do with theso issues. To revert to the so-called inrush of "undesirable immigrants" in the early 'seventies, has anyone studied tho habits regarding alcoholism and sexual morality of those cases, where the family conditions were poor? Bad habits, rather than poor stock, may be found lo be the cause.